Well, another Black Friday has come and
gone. We have seen the usual stampeding crowds.
But something else happened during the
start of this holiday shopping season. A report was issued by the
federal government, yes, the same federal government led by President
Donald Trump.
There is some speculation that the
timing was deliberate. You know, everyone distracted by the annual
holiday shopping frenzy and partying for Thanksgiving that somehow
they wouldn't notice. Ahhh, but those nasty press types were quick
to make note of this rather dire report.
Now we see the talking heads that have
denied climate change basically saying, yes, there is climate change,
but there is no real proof that man is at fault or that we could
actually make a difference if we tried. Our climate is always
changing. Basically parroting what Donald Trump has come up with
for his new position. I say new, because in the past he was of the
belief that climate change was a hoax.
I hate to throw multiple things out
there all at once, but I feel I really need to make mention of
something that goes hand in hand with climate change, and that is
species extinction. While we have focused so much of our attention
on climate change we may have overlooked something that has just as
great an impact on the health of this planet, at least with respect
for human life. If you have a moment please listen to Elizabeth
Kolbert, the author of “The Sixth Extinction”, on her book and
this critical topic.
I would remind people that Donald Trump
is 72 years old. Unless there is a sudden snapping of the Earth's
climate, which is something that has been speculated on because there
is nothing to say this will be gradual, Donald Trump will not live to
see the extreme's that the recent report enumerate. His children
may, but he will not. And yet, he is having an inordinate amount of
influence on what the Untied States does to deal with this very
serious issue. An issue that will affect all of humanity in the
coming decades.
Perhaps it is time for us, “we the
people”, to try to stop and take a moment in our busy lives to look
a little more closely at climate change and species extinction.
Because while we may blame Donald Trump, he is only the expression of
what so many people out there believe. Because he and his followers
are what WE have allowed to be elected to run our government.